Extended shelf life yeast-raised baked goods

ABSTRACT

A formulation for making a yeast-raised baked good having an extended shelf life is provided. The ingredients that contribute to the shelf life extension of the product are hard and soft wheat flours, dextrose, soybean oil, nonfat dry milk or milk replacement, fermented flavor, a gum blend, vital wheat gluten, distilled monoglycerides, an enzyme blend, konjac flour, and methylcellulose.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of InternationalApplication No. PCT/US99/29809 filed on Dec. 16, 1999, which claims thebenefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) of U.S. Provisional Application No.60/112,349, filed on Dec. 16, 1998, and of U.S. Provisional ApplicationNo. 60/112,350, filed on Dec. 16, 1998, the disclosures of all of whichare incorporated by reference herein.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

[0002] N/A

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0003] Yeast-raised doughnuts and other yeast-raised or yeast-leavenedbaked goods, such as Danish pastries and croissants, are prized fortheir soft texture and their fresh yeasty flavor characteristics.Doughnuts are particularly recognized for their airy texture anddistinctive fresh yeasty aroma and flavor. The primary components forcommercial yeast raised doughnuts are flours, sugars, proteins, flavors,enzymes, emulsifiers, hydrocolloids, chemical leavenings, and fats andoils.

[0004] The current shelf life for the optimum quality of commercialyeast-raised doughnuts is about eight to ten hours. These doughnuts losetheir eating quality “freshness” as they age and become stale. Stalingis any change, other than microbiological spoiling, that occurs indoughnuts during storage and that makes them less acceptable toconsumers. Staling occurs when the starch molecules crystallize or“retrograde.” Starch retrogradation occurs when the molecules ofgelatinized starch reassociate in an ordered structure. In the initialphase, two or more starch molecular chains form a simple juncture pointthat then may develop into more extensively ordered regions. Ultimately,this crystalline ordering causes the doughnuts to become stale.

[0005] The changes due to staling are sensory (flavor) and/or physical(loss of crumb softness) . Regarding the flavor changes, stale doughnutshave an oxidized off flavor and/or lose the fresh yeasty flavor that ischaracteristic of fresh, yeast-raised doughnuts. Many consumers who areserved “stale” doughnuts are dissatisfied. Thus, any improvement thatcould extend the shelf life of doughnuts or other baked goods and/orretard or delay staling would be beneficial.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0006] The present invention provides a formulation for baking ayeast-raised baked good having an extended shelf life. The ingredientsthat contribute to the shelf life extension of the product are hardwheat flour, soft wheat flour, dextrose, soybean oil, nonfat dry milk ormilk replacement, fermented flavor, gums, vital wheat gluten, distilledmonoglycerides, enzymes, konjac flour, and methylcellulose.

[0007] In particular, a formulation of dry ingredients for ayeast-raised baked good having an extended shelf life comprises at least74 weight % flour; 6.5-9 weight % dextrose; 6-8 weight % soybean oil;0.75-1.25 weight % nonfat dry milk or milk replacement; 0.04-0.06 weight% yeast flavor; 0.2-0.4 weight % blend of gums; 0.45-1.0 weight % vitalwheat gluten; 0.1-0.4 weight % distilled monoglycerides; 0.6-1.0 weight% blend of enzymes; 0.0-0.18 weight % konjac flour; and 0.1-0.4 weight %methylcellulose.

[0008] A particularly preferred formulation of dry ingredients comprisesat least 60.50 weight % hard wheat flour; at least 17.33 weight % softwheat flour; at least 6.70 weight % dextrose; at least 6.40 weight %soybean oil; at least 1.00 weight % nonfat dry milk or milk replacement;0.05 weight % yeast flavor; at least 0.23 weight % blend of gums; atleast 0.45 weight % vital wheat gluten; 0.1 weight % distilledmonoglycerides; 0.6 weight % blend of enzymes; and at least 0.13 weight% methylcellulose.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] The present invention provides an optimization of the formulationof the ingredients for yeast-raised baked goods to increase the shelflife of the baked goods. The present optimized formulation isparticularly beneficial for increasing the shelf life of doughnuts.

[0010] The dough for yeast-raised baked goods typically comprises anumber of dry ingredients to which one or more liquids are added. Thebasic ingredients for doughnuts include flours, sugars, proteins,flavors, enzymes, emulsifiers, hydrocolloids, chemical leavenings, andfats and oils. The critical functional ingredients, for example,emulsifiers, enzymes, and humectants, in the formulation of prior artyeast-raised doughnuts are either at an inappropriate amount or are notof the appropriate class of compounds. Two formulations are provided.The first formulation, Formula A, gives an acceptable extended shelflife product, as indicated in parent international application no.PCT/US99/29809. The second formulation, Formula B, is preferred tooptimize the cost of certain ingredients. The resulting product does notdiffer substantially from the product resulting from Formula A.

[0011] Accordingly, doughnuts according to the present invention includethe following dry ingredients (excluding yeast): FORMULA A FORMULA BAcceptable Preferred Preferred Range Amount Amount Ingredient(s) (wt. %)(wt. %) (wt. %) Hard wheat flour 58.00-62.00 60.50 62.00 (bread flour)soft wheat flour 16.00-18.20 17.33 18.20 (pastry flour) dextrose6.50-9.00 8.55 6.70 (monohydrate) soybean oil, 6.00-8.00 6.60 6.40 bulksalt 1.00-2.00 1.45 1.45 color 0.10 0.10 0.10 nonfat dry milk 0.75-1.251.00 1.05 or milk replacement sodium acid 0.50-0.90 0.70 0.70pyrophosphate fermented flavor 0.04-0.06 0.05 0.05 soy flour 0.60-1.401.20 1.25 natural and 0.08-0.40 0.30 0.08 artificial vanilla flavorsodium 0.40-0.60 0.50 0.50 bicarbonate I-cysteine or 0.01 0.01 0.01L-cysteine Crumb Softener 1.45-3.38 1.71 1.51 Blend

[0012] In Formula A, the Crumb Softener Blend includes the following:FORMULA A FORMULA A Range in Preferred Preferred Total Amount in Amountin Formula Blend Total Formula Ingredient(s) (wt. %) (wt. %) (wt. %)Enzyme blend 0.60-1.00 35.191 0.60 Distilled 0.10-0.40 5.865 0.10monoglycerides Vital wheat 0.45-1.00 29.326 0.50 gluten Konjac flour0.00-0.18 4.692 0.08 Gum blend 0.20-0.40 14.663 0.25 Methylcellulose0.10-0.40 10.264 0.18

[0013] In Formula B, the Crumb Softener Blend includes the following:FORMULA B FORMULA B Range in Preferred Preferred Total Amount in Amountin Formula Blend Total Formula Ingredient(s) (wt. %) (wt. %) (wt. %)Enzyme blend 0.60-1.00 39.74 0.60 Distilled 0.10-0.40 6.62 0.10monoglycerides Vital wheat 0.45-1.00 29.80 0.45 gluten Konjac flour0.00-0.18 0.00 0.00 Gum blend 0.20-0.40 15.23 0.23 Methylcellulose0.10-0.40 8.61 0.13

[0014] The ingredients that contribute to the shelf life extension ofthe product are the hard wheat flour, soft wheat flour, dextrose,soybean oil, nonfat dry milk or milk replacement, the fermented flavor,the gum blend, vital wheat gluten, distilled monoglycerides, the enzymeblend, konjac flour, and methylcellulose.

[0015] Vital wheat gluten is a wheat protein that acts as a humectant,to retain doughnut moisture, as well as a crumb softener. It isavailable as Provim ESP® from ADM/Arkady in Olathe, Kans.

[0016] The nonfat dry milk or milk replacement is a dairy protein thathas a positive effect in delaying staling. The milk replacement mayinclude, for example, whey solids, milk protein concentrate, and wheyconcentrate in suitable amounts, as would be known to those of skill inthe art. Dairy Blend #DD001, available from Clofine Dairy Products, issuitable as a milk replacement.

[0017] The enzyme blend contains fungal amylase that is a blend of 96.18weight % novo maltogenic amylase and 3.82 weight % novo xylanase. Theseenzymes break down starch molecules, preventing starchrecrystallization. This helps prevent starch retrogradation and delaysstaling. The enzyme blend also includes lecithin (8.71 weight %), monoand diglycerides (34.65 weight %), sodium stearoyl lactylate (34.65weight %), and whey protein concentrate (15.00 weight %), and wheypowder (1.40 weight %), in addition to the enzymes (7.59 weight %).

[0018] Konjac flour is a blend of the dried root tuber of AmorphophallusKonjac and carrageenan. It helps retain moisture of the doughnuts, thusretaining crumb softness and delaying staling. Konjac flour is availableas Nutricol® GP 312 Konjac Flour from the Food Ingredients Division ofFMC Corporation, of Philadelphia, Pa. While preferred, konjac flour isnot critical and may be eliminated if desired, as in Formula B.

[0019] Methylcellulose is a hydrocolloid that is also able to retainmoisture of the doughnuts, thereby contributing to crumb softness. Themethylcellulose is available as Methocell A4M from Dow Chemical U.S.A.of Midland, Mich.

[0020] The above ingredients are also able to tolerate a wider variationin the parameters in the process of making doughnuts, such as bowl time,dough temperature, proof time, proof temperature, or proof humidity.

[0021] The flavors in the above formulation include a fermented flavoror encapsulated yeast flavor and a vanillin flavor. The fermented flavorextends the flavoring aromatics of doughnuts at least twenty-four hours.The fermented flavor may comprise a spray dried beer flavor and isavailable, for example, as Takasago Flavor's Artificial Beer Flavor#991005 or Cumberland Packing #868054. The natural and artificialvanilla flavor is available as, for example, BR Flavors Bench #082699powder or Flavorchem #93.650 liquid vanilla concentrate. If a liquidflavoring is used/ it is sprayed or plated onto the dry ingredients. Theamount of liquid flavoring as well as the soybean oil used in theformulation does not substantially affect the moisture content of themix of dry ingredients.

[0022] The distilled monoglycerides are dough conditioners, available asI-cysteine Dimodan PV 300 K, from Danisco or L-cysteine LC#5 fromAssist-American Ing. Co.

[0023] The gum blend typically includes cellulose gum, guar gum,carrageenan, gum acacia, and xanthan. The particular amounts of the gumsare not critical, and those of skill in the art are able to select theappropriate types and proportions of gums. Other gums besides thoselisted may be used as well, as would be known by those of skill in theart.

[0024] Typically in the baking of commercial baked goods, the above dryingredients are packaged and sent to bakeries or stores. To make thebaked goods from the above formulation of dry ingredients, yeast andwater are added and mixed at the bakery or store. Yeast is added at aratio of 4 percent of the weight of the dry ingredients, and water isadded at a ratio of 43-46 percent of the weight of the dry ingredients.The dough is then allowed to rest, formed, proofed, and baked, as knownin the prior art or more preferably as particularly indicated in parentinternational application no. PCT/US99/29809.

[0025] The product resulting from Formula B was tested using standardtextural analysis measurements performed in the baking industry to trendthe shelf life of products. In particular, plate and poke tests wereperformed. The plate tests involved a plate force test, which determinesthe force necessary to compress the baked good to a specified distancefor a specified time at a specified speed, and a plate area test, whichdetermines the amount of work involved in compressing the baked good tothis distance. The plate area test is the best overall indicator forsoftness. The poke tests involved a poke force test, which determinesthe force required to puncture the baked good, and a poke area test,which determines the amount of work involved in puncturing the bakedgood.

[0026] The tests compared product resulting from Formula B to controlproduct resulting from Formula A twenty-four hours after baking. Inthese results, the lower the number, the greater the softness of theproduct. Representative test results, illustrated in the followingtable, show that the trend of the texture and freshness of the Formula Bproduct is satisfactory. Poke Poke Plate Plate Force Area Force AreaFormula A 122.62 832.86 122.60 20,876 (control) Formula B 119.87 872.10119.9  15,991

[0027] The formulation of the present invention is suitable for makingany type of yeast-raised or yeast-leavened baked goods. Suchyeast-raised baked goods include, but are not limited to, doughnutrings, doughnut shells, doughnut holes, croissants, Danish pastries, andfancies such as bowties, cinnamon rolls, turnovers, tarts, or eclairs.

[0028] The invention is not to be limited by what has been particularlyshown and described, except as indicated by the appended claims.

We claim:
 1. A formulation of dry ingredients for a yeast-raised bakedgood having an extended shelf life, the dry ingredients comprising: atleast 74 weight % flour; 6.5-9 weight % dextrose; 6-8 weight % soybeanoil; 0.75-1.25 weight % nonfat dry milk or milk replacement; 0.04-0.06weight % yeast flavor; 0.2-0.4 weight % blend of gums; 0.45-1.0 weight %vital wheat gluten; 0.1-0.4 weight % distilled monoglycerides; 0.6-1.0weight % blend of enzymes; 0.0-0.18 weight % konjac flour; and 0.1-0.4weight % methylcellulose.
 2. The formulation of claim 1 , furthercomprising: at least 60.50 weight % hard wheat flour; at least 17.33weight % soft wheat flour; at least 6.70 weight % dextrose; at least6.40 weight % soybean oil; at least 1.00 weight % nonfat dry milk ormilk replacement; 0.05 weight % yeast flavor; at least 0.23 weight %blend of gums; at least 0.45 weight % vital wheat gluten; 0.1 weight %distilled monoglycerides; 0.6 weight % blend of enzymes; and at least0.13 weight % methylcellulose.
 3. The formulation of claim 2 , furthercomprising: 62.00 weight % hard wheat flour; 18.20 weight % soft wheatflour; 6.70 weight % dextrose; 6.40 weight % soybean oil; 1.05 weight %nonfat dry milk or milk replacement; 0.05 weight % yeast flavor; 0.23weight % blend of gums; 0.45 weight % vital wheat gluten; 0.10 weight %distilled monoglycerides; 0.60 weight % blend of enzymes; and 0.13weight % methylcellulose.
 4. The formulation of claim 1 , wherein theyeast flavor comprises a spray dried beer flavor.
 5. The formulation ofclaim 1 , wherein the enzyme blend includes novo maltogenic amylase andnovo xylanase.
 6. The formulation of claim 1 , wherein the enzyme blendcomprises 7.59 weight % enzymes.
 7. The formulation of claim 1 , whereinthe gum blend includes cellulose gum, guar gum, carrageenan, gum acacia,or xanthan, or a combination of cellulose gum, guar gum, carrageenan,gum acacia, and xanthan.
 8. The formulation of claim 1 , furthercomprising: 1-2 weight % salt; 0.1 weight % color; 0.5-0.9 weight %sodium acid pyrophosphate; 0.6-1.4 weight % soy flour; 0.08-0.4 weight %vanilla flavor; and 0.01 weight percent I-cysteine or L-cysteine.
 9. Adough comprising the formulation of claim 1 and further comprising:yeast at a ratio of approximately 4% of the weight of the dryingredients; and water at a ratio of 43-46% of the weight of the dryingredients.
 10. A baked good comprising the baked dough of claim 1 .11. A baked good comprising the baked dough of claim 1 having a shelflife of at least eight hours.
 12. A baked good comprising the bakeddough of claim 1 having a shelf life of at least twenty-four hours.